Sci-Fi Storm

It’s never too late: KatzSmith Productions (a partnership between David Katzenberg and Seth Grahame-Smith) have reportedly signed a two-year first-look deal with Warner Bros – and one if the fruits of this deal could be a true sequel to the 1988 Tim Burton-directed Beetlejuice.

Seth Grahame-Smith wrote the screenplay for the upcoming Tim Burton movie Dark Shadows, which helped spark the deal. He will write two scripts, one of which is expected to be Beetlejuice 2. No word on whether Burton or title star Michael Keaton will be involved yet.

The latest in the X-Men movie franchise, X-Men: First Class comes out on [asin=B004LWZW4C]Blu-ray[/asin], [asin=B004LWZW42]DVD[/asin] and [asin=B005HNMPBM]Amazon Instant Video[/asin] this Friday, September 9th. I’ve had an early look at the DVD, and here are my impressions.
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It may not be surprising that there is some backlash to the changes being made to the upcoming [sfs=1098]upcoming Blu-ray release[/sfs] of the Star Wars saga. But some hardcore fans are calling for a boycott.

As we discussed before, some of the changes seem to be for he better, and we do Lucas has always detested when he had to settle for OK because technology didn’t allow for what he wanted. But are the changes to drive up sales as claimed? I’m not so sure. They don’t seem to be complaining about the inclusion of extras that easily could have been included in past releases – if anything that is going to be the driving factor on getting money from people who have already purchased it before. It is also a technology refresh – Blu-ray is still gaining steam to replace DVD, and with HD televisions also gaining, the higher resolution does make a difference. I really don’t think anyone is going to buy set set just to see an Ewok blink.
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First, there was the Special Editions. Then there were the DVD versions. And now, with the [sfs=1098]upcoming Blu-ray release on September 16th[/sfs], we’ve got another version.

One change we can understand – in The Phantom Menace Yoda was a puppet (much like his previous two appearances), but compared to Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith where he was CGI he just looks wrong. So now he’s been redone as CGI and looks TONS better. Take a look:
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No one at Disney is saying a word, but Bruce Boxleitner is. While signing autographs at the recent D23 Expo in Anaheim, the actor who played the title character said that Tron 3 is “already a done deal…it’s already in the works.” He even said that it would likely come out in 2013, but stepped back a bit and said it takes a while to make a movie. 2013 seems rather ambitious for something that the only thing we know about is that it has a writer (David DiGilio, Eight Below).

Before then, we definitely get the animated Tron: Uprising next year, and they might want feedback on that before a full green light on production.

If you missed the MTV Music Awards (yes, they still have those…) where they showed the official sneak peek of the highly anticipated The Hunger Games movie, based on the bestselling [asin=0545265355]first book of a trilogy by Suzanne Collins[/asin], here’s your chance! See the very first glimpse at how the adaptation of the Suzanne Collins’ bestseller will be brought to life on the big screen on March 23, 2012! The Hunger Games is directed by Gary Ross (Seabiscuit, Pleasantville) and features an all-star cast including Jennifer Lawrence (X-Men: First Class ), Josh Hutcherson (Red Dawn), Liam Hemsworth (The Last Song), Woody Harrelson (Zombieland), Elizabeth Banks (Our Idiot Brother), Donald Sutherland (Horrible Bosses) and Lenny Kravitz.

Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the nation of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games. Part twisted entertainment, part government intimidation tactic, the Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which “Tributes” must fight with one another until one survivor remains.

Pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for these Games their entire lives, Katniss (Lawrence) is forced to rely upon her sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor Haymitch Abernathy (Harrelson). If she’s ever to return home to District 12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Earlier today reports abound that Blade Runner is being looked at again for some sort of production – and the person looking is Ridley Scott, who created it. It is unclear what form this would take – prequel, sequel, reboot – or something else. But while I was typing this and got distracted, Deadline just followed up with the news that Scott will direct a followup to the classic 1982 SF movie.

Joel Silver seems to have two labors of love – big screen adaptations of Wonder Woman and Logan’s Run. We know the latest history of Wonder Woman, but that doesn’t mean someone doesn’t think they can do it right. In steps Drive director Nicolas Winding Refn – who thinks he might get the chance – “if I get Logan’s Run right.”

Refn was named director of the long-stuck project back in February, with Drive star Ryan Gosling attached as the lead.

Cool projects never die, they just never get made…seems that director Ron Howard still has not given up hope on his The Dark Tower project, which Universal scrapped last month. According what producer Brian Grazer (Howard’s business partner in Imagine Entertainment) told the New York Post, Howard is shopping around for external financing, and they may plan to separate the TV series as separate deals, possibly distributing through alternative media such as Netflix. However, any production won’t begin until next year now, as Howard already has another project, the Formula One themed Rush, on his plate.

I managed to catch Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes today – and I was pleasantly surprised. Overall I think it was a great movie, with little to criticize. Note that following does contain some level of spoilers – I don’t consider them serious though.

For those unfamiliar with the movie, is is essentially a remake of Conquest Of The Planet Of The Apes, as a prequel and genesis to the entire Planet Of The Apes mythos, although this story does not involve the time travel loop the original series of films presented. It is the present day, and research into drugs that can help the brain repair itself is tested on chimpanzees. When an apparently super-aggressive test ape escapes and causes havoc, the project is shut down. But there is an unexpected side effect…
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